Intraindividual Variability in Narrative Identity: Complexities,Garden Paths,and Untapped Research Potential

This paper introduces key concepts for studying intraindividual variability in narratives (narrative IIV). Narrative IIV is conceptualized in terms of sources of within-person variation (events and audiences) and dimensions of variation (structural and motivational/affective dimensions of narratives). Possible implications of narrative IIV for well-being and self and social development are outlined. Considering narrative IIV leads to complexity in both theory and method, raising the issue of whether some avenues might be more productive than others. Using previously collected data, we sought to evaluate the research potential of different indices of narrative IIV (n = 106 participants; n = 1272 narratives). All analyses were preregistered: doi: 10.17605/OSF.IO/SXV4W . Findings show that narrative IIV is distinct depending on source and dimension, replicating previous work. However, narrative IIV was largely unrelated to the measures of well-being and self and social development used in the present study. These findings support the practice of aggregating across narratives in existing research, at least for these outcomes and sources of variation, and provide important guidance for investigators who remain interested in the possible insights that narrative IIV may reveal about the person. © 2020 European Association of Personality Psychology     

Effects of context on the rate of conjunctive responses in the probabilistic truth table task

The probabilistic truth table task involves assessing the probability of "If A then C" conditional sentences. Previous studies have shown that a majority of participants assess this probability as the conditional probability P(C│A) while a substantial minority responds with the probability of the conjunction A and C. In an experiment involving 96 participants, we investigated the impact on the rate of conjunctive responses of the context in which the task is framed. We show that a context intended to lead participants to consider all the possible cases (i.e. the throw of a die known to allow six possibilities) elicited more conjunctive responses than a context assumed not to have this effect (an unfamiliar deck of cards). These results suggest that the step of inferring the probability can distort our assessment of participants' interpretation of conditional sentences. This might compromise the validity of the probabilistic task in studying conditional reasoning.     

Factors affecting perceived safety and enjoyment based on driver experience

A positive driving experience, especially for older drivers, increases the attention to the emotional dimensions of driving, such as the driver’s perceived safety. Therefore, this study empirically presents factors affecting driver experience and compares them between older and younger drivers. Consequently, we conducted a face-to-face survey on elderly and young drivers and analyzed the data of 246 drivers using structural equation modeling. The analysis presented measurements and structural model evaluations. Considering the analysis, it was found that driving-related information and car-exterior context affect the perceived safety and enjoyment of a driver’s experience. Additionally, car-exterior context exerts a greater influence on the perceived safety and enjoyment of the elderly drivers’ group than the young drivers’ group. The results of this study will empirically contribute to the satisfaction of driver experience and perceived safety improvement in the future. It also provides a basis for the development of driving interfaces to improve the quality of the driving experience of the elderly.